# Epigraph explained — The Sword of Damocles

> Chapter companion for The Sword of Damocles by Anna Katharine Green.

## What happens

The epigraph recounts the ancient tale of Damocles, a courtier of Dionysius, who is invited to experience the tyrant's felicity. He is surrounded by luxury and abundance, but upon looking up, he sees a sword suspended over his head by a single horsehair, symbolizing the precarious nature of power and happiness.

## Themes in this chapter

### Wealth and Morality

The epigraph highlights the moral lesson that great wealth and power come with hidden dangers and constant threat.

## Character check-ins

### Damocles

Courtier who envies Dionysius's wealth and is made to experience its peril.

## Key lines

> When all else fails love saves.

Love is the ultimate remedy when every other solution has been exhausted.

_This opening line suggests a central theme of the novel, though the epigraph itself focuses on the Damocles anecdote._

> Damocles was all joy, and looked upon himself as the happiest man in the world; when unfortunately casting up his eyes, he beheld over his head the point of a sword, which hung from the roof only by a single horsehair.

Damocles initially felt immense happiness in his luxurious surroundings, but his joy turned to fear when he noticed a sharp sword dangling above him by a fragile thread.

_This illustrates the precariousness of apparent happiness and the constant threat that accompanies great fortune._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_sword_of_damocles_se/chapters/epigraph
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_sword_of_damocles_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_sword_of_damocles_se/chapters